There was several things Mia has learned about slaves and being given orders over the years. The one important to note now was how orders could be taken. Ideally, orders should be as concise as possible with little room for the slave to misunderstand the master’s intention. Otherwise the slave might misinterpret and do something unexpected, or do what Mia enjoyed and twist the order to benefit her.

A perfect example of this was with her first master, who majorly messed up and gave Mia an order that freed her of her restraints and allowed her to lash out. Ordinarily a slave would be expected to not twist orders like this, as the risk of punishment was high.

But Mia didn’t care about the punishment in the first place.

Granted, she wasn’t actively looking for trouble, but she was a slave that was willing to push orders and has learned the boundaries of the master’s orders. Another way to put it was she was good at looking out for herself, willing to put up with a little pain to avoid a worse experience.

But back to technicalities… an order like ‘stand there’ meant just that, stand in the designated spot. It did not prevent movement of the rest of your body, if you stood there the collar wouldn’t take it as breaking an order. On the other hand, ‘stand there and don’t move’ would be the better order, and breaking it by moving would result in a harsher punishment. If you were following the order, you were free to move as you wish.

Which now brings us back up to the present.

Rowan’s order of ‘try your best to kill me’ was one of those orders Mia enjoyed, one that allowed her to lash out against her oppressors. Her eagerness and speed managing to surprise Rowan as she recklessly charged her and slashed with her dagger.

“Woah tere.” Rowan leaped back, calming himself and giving a chuckle “Just like a beast to charge recklessly.”

Ignoring the comment, Mia pursued him. Slashing horizontally at his waist but only managing to hit empty space as he jumped back. This time he countered with his leg, kicking her and sending her flying. Mia lost her balance, falling to the ground and skidding to a stop. The warmth of the princess’s healing wrapping around her as she picked herself up.

“Tsk tsk, come at me wit more finesse. Don’t just charge, plan, plan!” Rowan yelled, standing still and readying himself for her.

Mia wondered what he was planning to accomplish besides just beating her up, and she has no idea what he means by finesse. He does remember she has zero battle experience, right? But she had to take his words as an order. With that in mind she charged again, dagger raised in front of her.

“What did I just say?” Rowan stomped his feat, watching again as Mia charged at him “Do you not plan to learn anything? You can’t just run-in like tat as a rouge, you’ll get your party into danger.” The man sighed when Mia just continued to charge, shaking his head he stepped to the side and readied another kick but was surprised when Mia followed his side-step, keeping her dagger aimed towards him.

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“Oh? Te beast actually taking my advice? Still to slow.” This time Rowan brought down the hilt of his dagger, smacking Mia on the top of the head. Her vision went blurry for a moment as her brain was jostled, then she found herself flying as another kick forced her away.

She landed, was healed, and stood up. Of course, she didn’t just charge, when he ordered her to not do that. Another quirk Mia discovered about receiving orders was, if the slave was willing, they would learn at an increased rate as to not be punished. If this was a product from the collar itself, or just some mental gymnastics she did not know. What she did know was that the results couldn’t be argued against, remembering how well she could clean up some snooty noble’s room.

Taking a fleeting glance towards Athena she could tell the girl was enjoying this display, snickering to herself when ever Mia was hit. She sighed, readied her dagger and faced Rowan.

What followed was a series of more beatings. Mia would charge in, trying something new each time and would be swiftly kicked away each time with a retort. Most of the time just degrading her but sometimes he would offer advice or order her to do something different. To Mia’s credit, she did manage to surprise him a few times, but the gap between them was too large.

Observing his actions that thought only grew. His movements were swift, it reminded Mia of a snake in some way in how he moved to dodge her swipes while striking back with his leg. Even if she planned for the leg strike, he would just hit her with the hilt of his own dagger. This training lasted a few hours, Mia herself feeling as, circumstances aside, she made some progress. The others didn’t think so.

“We best stop it here.” Athena said, standing up from her seat and dusting off her dress. “I Don’t want to waste anymore of my mana on this beast.”

Mia stopped mid swing, her arms falling limp as she panted heavily. While healing made her body feel better, it did nothing for her stamina.

“Hrmph, tis beast barely learned anyting.” Rowan scoffed, raising up his leg for another kick, Mia braced herself but was surprised when the kick never came, instead she heard Athena’s voice.

“Did you not hear me? I will not be wasting anymore of my magic on this today. If she comes back too injured the hero will make a fuss.”

Rowan glanced back at the princess, then back at Mia. His leg still raised, debating if it was worth it to get another kick in. he shrugged, dropping his leg “Tere is always tomorrow” he chuckled.

Mia lowered her guard once he walked away. There is always tomorrow… she chuckled to herself, raising the dagger in her hand. Compared to when she first picked it up, something felt, different. She felt like she knew how to handle it better, how to swing, and even a few tricks. She guessed it was just another result of her training but either way, she smiled to herself. Having another way to defend herself was good.

“What are you doing? Drop that dagger and follow me already. “Athena huffed from the stone entrance, Rowan already nowhere to be seen “We have to get you changed before the hero is done with his training.”

Mia instantly dropped the dagger, much to her annoyance. She then followed the princess into the building. While walking and ignoring the stone hallways she looked herself over, covered in dirt, her clothes riddled with scattered holes, and the fur on her tail matted. She sighed,

She wanted a bath.